page_title: Sea otter conservation
section_title: Alaska
hierarchical_section_title: Sea otter conservation / Alaska
context_page_description: Modern efforts in sea otter conservation began in the early 20th century, when the sea otter was nearly extinct due to large-scale commercial hunting. The sea otter was once abundant in a wide arc across the North Pacific ocean, from northern Japan to Alaska to Mexico. By 1911, hunting for the animal's luxurious fur had reduced the sea otter population to fewer than 2000 individuals in the most remote and inaccessible parts of its range.
  During the 20th century, sea otter populations recovered from remnant populations in the far east of Russia, western Alaska, and California. Beginning in the 1960s, efforts to translocate sea otters to previously populated areas were also successful in restoring sea otters to other parts of the west coast of North America. Populations in some areas are now thriving, and the recovery of the sea otter is considered one of the greatest successes in marine conservation.
  In two important parts of its range, however, sea otter populations have recently declined or have plateaued at depressed levels. In the Aleutian Islands, a massive and unexpected disappearance of sea otters has occurred in recent decades.
context_section_description: Colonies were discovered around Alaska's Aleutian Islands and Prince William Sound in the 1930s. A sanctuary was created in Amchitka Island, whose sea otter population grew to outstrip its supply of prey. By the mid-1960s, Amchitka Island was being used a site for nuclear testing, which eventually killed many sea otters in the area. In advance of a major test in 1968, the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission agreed to move hundreds of the animals to other parts of the coast. Seven hundred sea otters were transplanted in the 1960s and 1970s, with survival rates improving as scientists became more knowledgeable about how to safely transport the animals. In 1973, the sea otter population in Alaska was estimated at between 100,000 and 125,000 animals.
caption: In the wake of the Exxon Valdez oil spill, heavy sheens of oil covered large areas of Prince William Sound.
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